RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY, Va. — Rappahannock County Public Schools (RCPS) has switched to distance learning this week after an uptick in reported flu and COVID-19 cases. The county also said that they would use the time to come up with a better strategy and protocols to limit the spread of COVID-19 following the concerns of the school community.
Although the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) has advised that the return to in-person learning is permissible during this time, the school district is taking matters into its own hands and decided to move back to distance learning from Aug. 24 to Aug. 27 due to "the high number of flu cases as well as additional COVID cases being reported this week," Rappahonock school officials said in a statement.
The school district said VDH officials only deem a temporary closure necessary to contain an outbreak, otherwise schools must have five days of in-person learning. RCPS said they consulted with VDH, and their advice was not to close schools right now, as they felt the school district's current protocols were fine.
RCPS said this conflicting information led them to decide on a week of distance learning "to provide time for the current quarantine/exposure cycle to end (Aug. 30)."
"We have heard your concerns and frustrations as parents, teachers, staff, and community members, and are also grappling with conflicting information from our guiding agencies," the school district said in a letter sent to its school community."
During this time, all after-school activities will be canceled, school officials said.
Students will receive instructions on how to access distance learning materials from their teachers for the week, and teachers will be reaching out to students to discuss their distance learning requirements.
All students who have not been advised to quarantine will be asked to return to classrooms on Aug.30, and all students and staff will be required to wear a mask indoors, regardless of vaccination status. RCPS said classroom seating will be reconfigured while students are out on distance learning, to allow for social distancing in class.
"Please understand that once these measures are in place, the risk of contracting COVID or being quarantined is not gone," RCPS said in its letter. "We need everyone to work together to limit exposure and make smart decisions to keep us all safe."
RCPS created a COVID-19 dashboard to update parents on the number of cases and quarantines across the county. They plan to frequently update it as data becomes available. Click here to view the dashboard.